


Like cat and mouse all over the house

by Bagge



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Bickering, Bow makes cake, Comedy, Friends working through stuff, Fur will fly, Gen, platonic glitra, sparks will fly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:41:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27644273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bagge/pseuds/Bagge
Summary: When Adora is away, Catra and Glimmer spend some quality time together. And by quality time I of course mean fighting like maniacs.
Comments: 12
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Copyright belongs to the copyright holders.

Adora was away.

That put Catra in a bad mood.

Catra was a generous soul, she didn't mind sharing.

She figured Adora wouldn't want her - her girlfriend - to have all the bad mood and Glimmer - her friend - to have none of it. So she set out to do some redistribution.

Really too generous for her own good.

"Catra..." Glimmer tried her best to control her voice. Catra lazily met her eyes.

"Sparkles?"

"Could you _please_ stop cleaning your knife by the table? While I eat my breakfast?"

"Oh, of course, sparkles. couldn't have imagined it would bother you."

Catra sauntered off, helpful soul that she was.

"Catra..." Glimmer took two deep breaths and swallowed before she could trust herself to be polite. Catra gave her a bright smile.

"Sparkles?"

"That tapestry was supposed to be a _gift_ to Mystacor. If you could _please_ find it in your heart to not use it as a _door mat_ it would be _highly_ appreciated."

"Oh, of course sparkles. Silly misunderstanding. Anyone could have mistaken a well wrapped piece of cloth in a locked chest in the queen's personal chamber for a door mat."

Catra sauntered off, friendly soul that she was.

" _Catra!_ " Glimmer held her teeth firmly shut, which made it sound more like a growl than a word.

"Yeeeees, Sparkles?"

"Could you _please_ be careful with..."

"Ooooops."

The figurine toppled over and shattered against the floor. Catra looked first at it, then at glimmer with big, faux-innocent eyes that just screamed "what are you going to do about it?"

"Catra!" Glimmer cried. Have you any idea of how valuable that thing was? It has been in the family for centuries. It has... HEY, step away from that!"

Catra turned to the mantelpiece again and was seemingly absorbed with studying the two remaining figurines. She extended a claw and touched one of them with a little 'ping'. It wobbled dangerously close to the edge.

"Catra..." Glimmer said through gritted teeth. Catra did a show of slowly turning around with her hans raised, and with great care took a step away from the mantelpiece. Glimmer exhaled.

" _Thank_ you. Now perhaps we can..."

Without Catra breaking eye-contact with Glimmer, her tail whipped up and swept the remaining figurines from the mantelpiece and down to the floor where they shattered in a cascade of noise and shards.

"Oooops."

Bow leapt to hold Glimmer back but was too late. She teleported right to the spot where Catra had stood, feet first, but Catra had already jumped up to the rafters. With a mocking laughter she swung over to the next beam and quickly moved away with Glimmer screaming bloody murder after her.

She was already in a better mood.

No doubt Adora would be proud of her for being so generous. 

\- - -

"What are you doing, Glimmer?"

"I'm _trying_ to write a letter."

"Oooooh! Can I play with the inkwell, Glimmer?"

"NO, Catra."

"Can I just stand here, Glimmer, if I _promise_ not to bother you."

"Really think you could pull that off, Catra?"

"Whaaaaat. I'm not touching you, am I?" Glimmer sighed and put down the mostly unwritten letter.

"Are you going to follow me all day?" she said with exasperated voice.

"Isn't it _fun_ to spend time together?" Catra drawled. "I think I'm getting the hang of all this 'friend' stuff."

"Oh, I wouldn't want it any differently," Glimmer answered with an equally faux saccharine voice. Catra immediately got suspicious.

"You... wouldn't?"

"Of course not. I'm _so_ glad you spend time with me rather than spend it... somewhere else."

Catra ran, but she got back to her room too late.

She could only stare. The cleaning staff must have worked in record speed. The whole room... sparkled. Every surface was polished. Every piece of cloth was washed. The bed was perfectly made. Catra could almost admire the cruel elegance of it all. Nothing was destroyed. Nothing was taken. But the mark she had put on it was washed away as if... As if this had never been their room at all. And the smell of Adora was gone. There was only soap now. And glitter. She spun around.

"We thought it was a good time for spring cleaning now when Adora is away," Glimmer said smugly, lounging by the door. "No need to thank me." She poofed away before Catra could get to her.

What Catra did to Glimmer's bed in retaliation had no finesse at all. But it got the point across. Glimmer's response to _that_ was only slightly less crude, if only because it involved rope, pulleys and no less than three bucket's of water.

In hindsight, that was when the day got slightly out of hand.

\- - -

Bow managed to coax Glimmer out in the castle garden to 'cool down', and Catra spent some constructive time sulking and licking her wounds in one of the many forgotten nooks she had found in the rafters.

After a while she grew bored and climbed down to find Glimmer again. She found her in one of the smaller chambers on the top floor where she was busy taking down a large vase from a shelf.

"Oooooh! What's that?" Catra said brightly. "It looks so... fragile." Glimmer spun round.

"Nothing." Catra's smile grew larger.

"Spaaaaaarkles. You don't need to keep secrets from me." She sauntered over to the shelf.

"Catra..." Glimmer said with that sort of low, slow, barely controlled voice that sometimes is the only available alternative to screaming and punching. "This vase is a birth gift to me from my aunt. My mother cherished it greatly. I will _not_ see it destroyed just as a thoughtless provocation."

Catra looked att Glimmer. She looked at the vase. She veeeeeeery slowly reached out a hand and patted the vase as softly as she could, barely connecting.

"Oh dear, I better be careful then. We wouldn't want any... Accidents." She patted the vase harder. It wobbled slightly.

"Catra..."

"Whaaaat?" Catra slowly turned around. But this time Glimmer was ready. She started to teleport at the same time Catra started to turn, and before Catra's tail even twitched, Glimmer materialized behind her and stomped down on it. Hard.

Catra let out a meowl and lounged for the vase, fully intent on knocking it down with a full body tackle if she had to. But Glimmer was quicker and grabbed the vase and poofed away again. She materialized in the other end of the room and tauntingly held the vase in front of her like a lure.

"Here, kitty, kitty, kitty," she mocked and ran out of the room. Catra jumped to her feet with a snarl.

That did it! The vase would get it.

\- - -

Glimmer ran in zig-zag through the corridors with Catra in hot pursuit. A closed door temporary put Glimmer in a dead end. Catra laughed manically and lept for her. Glimmer looked around panicky and poofed away. Catra threw open the door just in time to see Glimmer poof into existence, not holding the vase. She flopped down in a sofa and smiled at Catra between hard breaths.

"I've hidden it. So sorry you didn't get to have your little fun this time. Better luck next ti... hey!" Catra had given Glimmer's soot stained clothes one glance and briskly walked up to the fireplace.

She winked at Glimmer and quickly crawled up the chimney. Glimmer jumped to her feet. The vase was lodged in the fireplace on the next floor. Catra was just within arms reach of it when Glimmer poofed into existence, grabbed the vase and poofed out again. Catra didn't even slow down but continued upwards as fast as she could. She had started to learn how to read Glimmer's tells as she teleported, and this had clearly been a jump up. 

She erupted from the chimney and saw Glimmer sitting on the roof, breathing hard. When he saw Catra she yelped and poofed out of existence again. Catra smiled predatory. With Glimmer this worn out, there was only one place to go.

Being a good guy, she had almost forgotten how _fun_ it was to hunt princesses. Almost.

\- - -

Glimmer sat by the moonstone, radiating in its light and power. The vase was next to her. Catra slowly crept closer, careful not to make a sound. When she judged she was close enough she started sprinting. She still made almost no sound, but Glimmer must have seen her coming because she jumped to her feet. This time Catra did not go for the vase, she went straight for Glimmer herself. Glimmer only narrowly managed to jump to the side.

"No poof?" Catra taunted. "Didn't have time to refuel properly? Isn't that a shame?" She held up her right hand and unsheeted the claws. She smiled maliciously as Glimmer grew paler.

"Catra..." Glimmer said carefully. She took a step back as Catra took a step forward.

"Sparkles?" Catra answered in sweet voice as she took a step to the side, forcing Glimmer to retreat towards the edge of the platform.

It was a very long way down.

"You don't think you maybe might be taking this just a bit too far?" Catra considered that.

"No, sparkles. I truly don't." And with that, she took a quick step back to the vase and kicked it over the edge. She sheeted her claws and looked at Glimmer with a toothy smile.

"Ooooops."

Glimmer made a half strangled sound and jumped - not over the edge but to the moon-stone. As she touched it with both palms its light changed, became darker. Catra could see outlines of first-one's writing within the gem - disconcertingly overlapping with similar writing on Glimmer's skin. The effect only lasted for a moment, and then Glimmer poofed out of existence. Catra saw her rematerializes in the air where she caught the vase and poofed again. Catra was already running as a flash of light from the corridor on the third floor revealed where the princess had jumped to. Catra flew through the air and crashed through the window, forcing Glimmer on the retreat again.

Glimmer was quick, but Catra was quicker and Glimmer had the vase to carry. It was only the teleportation that gave Glimmer enough of an edge to stay a step ahead of Catra, and Catra forced her to make extensive use of it. Apparently Glimmer realized this, because she went on the offensive. Her next poof brought her just behind Catra and she kicked at her. Catra easily jumped to the side - carrying a large vase does nothing for your balance and elegance in battle - and glimmer growled in frustration. She poofed away, and when she came back again she didn't carry the vase. Catra's sensitive ears picked up a small tinkle from next door.

This time Glimmer had materialized in the air above Catra and managed a savage kick to her head before Catra dropped to the floor and scurried to the side. Glimmer followed. Catra took a leap backwards and was already on the move when Glimmer poofed into existence where she just had stod, releasing a handful of Glitter that made Catra's eyes hurt. Glimmer disapperared again, but rather than attempting a strike, Catra had grabbed the chandelier, and when she first the first hint of a pink light, indicating where Glimmer would show up, she pounced.

However, before she could strike, an arrow hit the very same spot, knocking the wind out of the queen and trapping her in net. Catra desperately tried to change her direction mid-air, but the next arrow caught her just as neatly and she was trapped in a net of her own just next to Glimmer. Both of them struggled to get a limb free, to get their breathing under of control, to get out, but neither of them were in a position to do so quickly.

"STOP!" Bow growled as he walked up to them and something in his voice cut right through Catra's fury like an arrow through chain-mail. By the look of it, he had a similar effect on Glimmer who stopped trying to teleport and went still.

He was easy to dismiss. Always the easy-going, accommodating one, but he was the survivor of multiple battles and adventures with nothing but a bow and some trick arrows between himself and more powerful foes (more often than not Catra herself). He knew what it took to win and was fully willing to get it done himself if there were no other options. Right now, as he glared daggers at both of them, it seemed wise to wait for Glimmer to be stupid enough to be the one to talk first.

Thankfully, Glimmer was predictable like that.

"Bo-ow!" she whined. "What are you doing. I was winning." Catra snorted.

"No one is winning," he cried. "You are wrecking this place. this gotta stop now before someone is seriously hurt."

"Bow! You know what she did. She has been a total pest this entire morning." Catra made a small nod, admitting the point. Bow made an exasperated gesture.

"I don't care! Yes! She is obnoxious, rude and pathologically invested in getting under our skin." Catra nodded again. "She is also our friend." Catra suddenly got a very uneasy feeling in her stomach.

" _Of course_ she's our friend, Bow!" The uneasy feeling grew larger. "And sometimes friends _fight_ ".

"But they don't kill each other!"

"I was not going to _kill_ her..."

"As if you ever could, sparkles!" Catra snapped, eager to take back emotional control.

"SHUT UP!" Bow glared at both of them in turn. Then he took a deep breath and went on in forced calm voice. "We are all friends here, and sometimes friends need to work things out. That could be done by shared activities, or, you know, _talking_ , or that thing with scented oils Perfuma is so fond of, but I do realize that's not the mindspace where the two of you are right now. I respect that. If you need to beat each other up to sort out... things, then so be it."

"This is far more than a sparring match, Bo..."

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Both Glimmer and Catra promptly silenced. Bow pinched his nose.

"Three rules," he said through gritted teeth. They both nodded like disobedient cadets.

"First rule, no one is seriously hurt. Second rule, the castle staff do _not_ clean this mess up. You do. Third rule, no one dies. Do you agree?"

"I think the third rule and the first rule kinda..."

"I SAID, DO YOU AGREE?"

"Yes, Bow, sir, yes, sir!" Catra and Glimmer babbled in unison. He glared at them in silence for a few more, uncomfortable moments. Then he relaxed and put the bow away. Both Catra and Glimmer realized they had been holding their breaths.

"I'm so glad we could have this little talk," he said. "And I _am_ proud of you for finding a way to sort out your emotions. Please keep your fight out of the kitchen. I'm making cake."

And he walked down the corridor.

Catra and Glimmer waited for a few heartbeats after he was gone, then they glanced at each other.

Glimmer poofed away in the exact same moment as Catra unsheeted her claws and tore her way out of the net. She bounded down the corridor and dodged a ball of glitter as Glimmer ran after her. Catra aimed for the door, but before she could get there Glimmer had teleported in, grabbed the vase and teleported out. Catra smirked. The hunt was on.

\- - -

Glimmer did not know where Catra was. That was scary.

She crept through a dimly lit corridor and debated whether it would be better if it was brightly lit. Catra could see in darkness, right? So didn't the gloom here in the basement level of the castle just make it easier for Catra to sneak up on her? On the other hand, knowing that, Catra would probably not expect Glimmer to hide down here where Catra would have the advantage, right? She would concentrate her search to the upper levels. But if she knew Glimmer thought of that, she would obviously be down here, maybe sneaking up on her from behind right _now_... Glimmer spun around and unleashed a ball of glitter in the gloom behind her. Nothing was there. It just served to make the shadows deeper. She swallowed hard and crept on, hugging the vase tightly.

From her hiding place further down the corridor Catra watched in great delight. She could practically taste Glimmer's fear. The tip of her tail twitched, but otherwise she didn't move a muscle. _Just a little bit closer, little mouse..._.

Glimmer stepped on the rope Catra had hidden on the floor, and Catra tugged hard. Glimmer cried as her feet disappeared under her and the vase went flying towards the hard stone floor. In the last minute she managed to weave a magic circle that cushioned the fall, and the vase bounced harmlessly and got to rest a few steps down the corridor. That's when the second part of the trap sprung, and Glimmer found herself ensnared in a net (thanks, Bow). Catra sauntered up to the vase and gave the struggling princess a triumphant smile.

"Too bad, sparkles. Better luck next ti... hey!"

Glimmer had manifested her mage staff in her hand, and a blinding light poured out from it. Glimmer snarled in fury and Catra had to look away. The flash ended as soon as it started, but when Catra could see again, Glimmer was gone.

As was the vase.

A growl formed in her throat. If this was how the princess wanted to play, who was Catra to deny her the pleasure?

\- - -

Glimmer had tucked vase away somewhere again, and Catra couldn't be bothered to sniff it out. Not when there were so much more _interesting_ things going on right here. She dodged left and the ball of sparkles missed her completely. She laughed and ran up the wall, dodging the next shot as well. Glimmer ran after her, completely on the offense now, staff blasting.

"I don't know how many ways there are to skin a cat, but I sure look forward to find out."

"You would just _love_ that, wouldn't you, Sparkles?"

"Come back here and you'll find out."

"Of course, why didn't you say so, princess!" Catra flipped in the air and took a leap straight towards Glimmer, claws out. Glimmer cried in fear and poofed further down the corridor. Catra laughed again and jumped up to the top of an ornamental pillar.

This was it! Blood pumping, banter back and forth, hurting her enemy with her words before she hurt her with her claws. Catra had _missed_ this.

Glimmer hit the floor with her staff, and a crack formed, moving straight towards the pillar. As it fell, Catra grabbed hold of a banner and swung to the other side of the corridor. Glimmer tracked her with her staff, and Catra quickly dodged let, right, feinted a back flip and then a _leap_. Glimmer was caught off guard and fell backwards, holding her staff up for defense, tip glowing. Catra's swipe narrowly missed the princess and her claws took out part of the castle wall. At the same time the ball of force Glimmer unleashed melted a perfect, circular hole through the window.

They both froze. Catra was acutely aware that any sudden moves could very well be the _last_ sudden moves for at least one of them. For a few terrible seconds neither moved, and neither made a sound except for their hearts beating like drums.

With deliberate care, Catra caught Glimmer's gaze and held up her left hand. She allowed the claws to slide back in. With the same deliberate care, Glimmer dematerialized her mage staff. They held their gaze for another heartbeat and then started to move at the same time.

Catra took another swipe at Glimmer, this time without claws and thus pretty likely not to kill her. Glimmer dodged and took a quick step back, aiming a ball of sparkles at her face. If it hit it would sting and distract, but probably not melt her flesh.

Friend stuff.

\- - -

They were on the ground level again. Glimmer had retrieved the vase and was on the run. Catra followed like a leopard. She crashed through a door, and too late realized that Glimmer had not came this way. She was in the kitchen. Bow looked up from the counter where he stirred a bowl with something delicious.

"Oh, hi Catra. Want to lick the spoon?"

Behind Catra, Glimmer stuck her head through the door and whimpered slightly. Bow rolled his eyes and took a clean spoon from the counter and dipped it in the batter. He gave them one spoon each, making sure they both contained the same amount of delicious stickiness. They both thanked him, enthusiastically licked their spoons clean, carefully put them in the sink and gently walked out.

They closed the door.

They eyed each other.

"Count of three, sparkles," Catra said. Glimmer looked up and down the corridor in panic.

"Wait! I'm not..."

"Two..." In the same moment Glimmer started to run, Catra pounced. She landed on Glimmer's back and sent the vase flying.

"Three," she purred. With a strangled outcry Glimmer poofed, taking Catra with her and managed to catch the vase.

She tried poofing again, but Catra dug in with her claws and followed her. Glimmer did a quick succession of jumps, Catra following her through each one, refusing to let go. Still clutching the vase like her life depended on it, Glimmer gave her an evil look and poofed again. This time high up in the air. They fell together.

"Not increasing the likelihood of me letting go anytime soon," Catra hissed and dug her claws deeper into Glimmer's back. Glimmer cringed, but for her only answer she pointed down.

They were rapidly falling towards the moat. The slimy water came closer very fast.

Swift Wind who flew by on his own business gave them a long look, but wisely decided not to get involved.

"All right, all right!" Catra abruptly let go of Glimmer. The princess smiled sweetly at her and waited a looooooooong heartbeat before she grabbed Catra's tail - the indignity - and poofed them back inside. Then she stuck her toungue out, let go of the tail and ran down the corridor. 

Catra swore and jumped to her feet. She snatched a poker from the fireplace and, holding it like a javelin, flung it towards the vase carried by the retreating princess. In the last minute Glimmer dropped to the floor and spun around. Catra grabbed a small metal figurine and flung it. Glimmer countered with a ball of lighting that made the figurine change course. It landed just next to Adora who just came happily strolling down the corridor.

"Hey everyone," Adora said. "Missed me? Did you know there's this crazy cave up in Dryl full of monsters? I had too.... oh shit.... FOR THE HONOR OF GRAY-SKULL!" As she started to run past the apron-clad Bow who rapidly and ineffectively tried to explain the situation to her, the sword transformed to a shield and she stepped in between the combatants.

"Catra," she said slowly, deliberate. "Please don't kill my friend.... Glimmer, please don't kill my girlfriend. I love you both very much and you have both done  
_very_ well lately. I'm sure if you both take one step back and... um... deep breaths or... that thing with scented oils Perfuma does...? Bow? Help? How do you get people to stop fighting without punching th... hey!"

Catra leaped and did a feint to the left. As She-Ra turned to track her, Glimmer poofed right behind her and unleashed a ball of sparkles right in her faces. There was no force behind it, but _a lot_ of glitter. Instinctively, She-Ra turned towards Glimmer, but she teleported out, leaving the overwhelmed warrior completely exposed to Catra's attack as she tackled her with such a force that she crashed straight through the big stained-glass window. Catra came to her feet by the window and Glimmer poofed to her side. They watched in silence the violently cursing hero land in a particularly slimy ornamental pond in the royal garden.

"Not dead," Glimmer commented.

"Not seriously hurt," Catra answered in the same matter-of-fact voice. They traded a blood-thirsty look.

"More than I can say about you, you furry maniac," Glimmer hissed.

"Come at me, sparkles," Catra answered and jumped back to avoid Glimmer's attack. She grabbed a rope from the drapes and tugged hard, causing the drapes to crash down over Glimmer. Catra jumped free and made a leap for the vase when Glimmer's hand shot out and grabbed her tail. Catra tugged free and snarled, just as Glimmer unleashed a ball of lighting in her face. 

Not bothering to wait for her vision to clear, Catra closed her eyes hard. Her ears told her Glimmer was trying to get to her feet. She danced to the left and - using the rope she had grabbed from the drapes as a whip - managed to entangle the enraged princess. She pulled hard and was rewarded with a grunt and a crash. She jumped backwards, did a flip and felt a whoooosh as another ball of light passed just next to her. She dropped to the floor and ran on all fours to the other end of the corridor.

She opened her eyes. Her vision was swarming with sparkles, but the vase was just a few steps away.

Catra reached the vase and turned around to shoot the still struggling Glimmer a smug, victorious smile. Then she slowly, deliberate extended a claw, and with an expansive gesture touched the vase with a little 'ping'.

Glimmer, who was still furiously trying to get up, let out a frustrated hiss and sank down to the floor. Catra sauntered over to her and slid down by her side.

"You loose, sparkles," she panted, still out of breath. Glimmer breathed hard on the floor, but gradually the breathing turned to laughter.

"Well done, horde scum," she said between gulps of air. Catra started to laugh too.

Glimmer extended a hand and unleashed a small, focused ball of lighting. The vase exploded in thousand fragments.

"I always hated that thing," she mused. Catra nodded.

"Yeah, I got it. Thanks for thinking up a game for us."

"Thanks for playing."

"...next time you might even win."

"Oh, you bet. Next time I won't go easy on you."

"Hah, you tell yourself that."

They stayed there on the floor together as they slowly got their breathing under control. Glimmer eased closer to Catra and put her head in her lap and Catra didn't hurt her for it.

They smiled at each other.

"We'd better go apologize to Adora."

"What? She wanted us to get along, didn't she?"

"Right now I assume she mainly wants to kill us, but I'm sure she will be very proud of us, eventually."

Adora was very proud of them. Eventually.


	2. Epilogue

" _Catra_ ," Glimmer cried. "Bow said we should _both_ help clean up. You _promised_ "

"I am helping, Sparkles," Catra lazily smiled. "I'm helping you find the spots you miss. Ooooh! There's one. Better sweep the floor again." 

"If you just grabb a broom yourself you could easily..."

Catra's tail flicked up and she knocked over the bin, causing rubbish and glass shards to fly all over the newly sweapt floor.

"Ooooops."


End file.
